Abstract
3D printing has become one of the most promising methods to construct delicate 3D structures. However, precision and material utilization efficiency are limited. Here, we propose a one-droplet 3D printing strategy to fabricate controllable 3D structures from a single droplet ascribing to the receding property of the three-phase contact line (TCL) of the resin droplet. The well-controlled dewetting force of liquid resin on the cured structure results in the minimization of liquid residue and the high wet and net material utilization efficiency in forming a droplet into a 3D structure. Additionally, extra curing induced protruding or stepped sidewalls under high printing speed, which require high UV intensity, can be prevented. The critical is the free contact surface property of the droplet system with the introduction of the receding TCL, which increased the inner droplet liquid circulation and reduces the adhesion properties among the liquid resin, cured resin, and resin vat.
Highlights
Solidified 3D structures are formed from the liquid resin droplet
During the printing process, the threephase contact line (TCL) of the liquid resin droplet recedes with the consumption of the liquid resin through continuous UV curing
We investigate the strategic advantage of the one-droplet 3D printing process through comparing with the traditional vat polymerization process using S-PDMS as the curing interface based on two parameters, the time-variant printing width and the ratio (D/Ddesign) of the printed width (D) to the designed width (Ddesign)
Summary
1234567890():,; Additive manufacturing or 3D printing rapidly turns computer-aided designs into complex 3D objects without the use of the molds, dies or lithographic masks that are needed for conventional manufacturing1,2. 3D printing based on photocuring, which allows solidification of a 3D model at the curing interface[3,4,5,6], has become a promising technique with a variety of applications, such as in biomimetic investigations[7,8,9,10,11], microfluidics[12,13,14], sensors, and shape-morphing systems[15,16,17,18,19]. Based on observations of natural lotus and pitcher plant surfaces, air or liquid trapped at the surface can greatly reduce the interfacial adhesion on the substrate, resulting in the sphere contact mode of a liquid droplet or the slipping phenomenon for liquids contacting such surfaces[23,24]. Inspired by these phenomena, we demonstrate an interfacial manipulation method to manufacture 3D structures from a single droplet with high wet and net material utilization efficiency. The devised process, which combines UV curing and droplet TCL dewetting, can be used to effectively grow 3D structures from a single resin droplet with improved 3D printing efficiency and precision
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